advice+from+others

Maine
> Next, it is very important to remember that any 1-1 project is a **teaching/learning project first and a technology project second**. You have to focus on providing opportunities and resources for the teachers and students to make use of the tools to effect their development. In the beginning of the program in Maine (2002), there was a heavy emphasis on teacher training and the development of content area mentors. These mentors then were able to put in to context for their peers how to best integrate new resources in to the classroom. > One of the key elements that we discovered early in the project is the importance of getting the **parents involved and agreeing** that we need to send the **laptops home**. This allowed the teachers to spend more instructional time on the task, and less on the mechanics. This effectively extended the school day in to the home for the students to discover which particular methods worked best for their learning style. > There are whole host of other observations that I can offer, please do not hesitate to contact me directly. I also encourage you to contact Bette Manchester at Maine DOE. [|http://www.maine.gov/mlti/team/index.htm>] > > Here’s an article from the 1to1 Stories Project that you might find helpful: http://1to1stories.org/?p=12 > Also, I’ve developed a model for “Doing 1to1 Right.” The beginning of that work is available here: http://mcmel-resources.wikispaces.com/Doing+1to1+Right > You can download the PDF of the model there. I’m presenting on the topic both at NECC in Atlanta this summer, and at the National Middle School Conference in the fall. > > Here’s the “technology” category from my blog: http://everyonelearns.blogspot.com/search/label/technology > There might be a couple articles there that are helpful.
 * 1) Trey B. (Falmouth Public Schools) - Willing to help us and will come here! One of the biggest questions that needs to be asked is: Has a **vendor** been chosen yet? A key component to the successes that we have seen with the project in Maine had to with the resources that Apple brought in from abroad. They provided project management, Tech training, standardized config engineering and testing, and a whole host of other support options. While I realize you are not talking about the same scope, it is important to have an understanding of what the vendor is/is not capable of providing.
 * 1) Mike Muir. (Farmington, ME) - [He will be presenting at NECC (national conference) in June, so I'll make sure I attend his session. - Sheila]